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Deck seems stacked against wild quail

Quail hunting

According to at least one study on Sandy Hollow WMA, wild quail face some seriously challenges in getting reestablished in Louisiana. (Photo by Todd Masson, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
(Todd Masson)

The relatively rapid decline of wild bobwhite quail has been studied across the southern states, and Louisiana is no exception. In one study, the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries radio-tagged 178 quail and banded 245 others on Sandy Hollow Wildlife Management Area in Tangipahoa Parish over the course of several years.

Their findings illustrated how difficult it is for quail to regain the foothold they once held in the South.

According to the department, the study found that:

-- Only 6.4 percent of quail survive more than one year. Most of the mortality in the study was due to predators, both avian and mammalian.

-- Overall, less than one in 12 birds was taken by hunters, and hunters harvested birds from less than one-third of the coveys. When a covey was found, about one in five birds was bagged.

-- Quail move considerable distances in the fall and spring. One covey in the study moved more than three miles, and movements of one mile were common.

Hunters encouraged the department to release pen-raised quail on the improved habitat of Sandy Hollow WMA, hoping the birds would get established and repopulate the area. The department did so, but the effort failed miserably.

A total of 33 pen-raised female quail were radio-tagged and released in groups in good habitat on the WMA. They were also provided supplemental food and water.

Within three days, 52 percent of the birds were dead, and at the end of two weeks, only one bird was still alive. According to the department, most of the mortality was due to predation.